Getting Started

Call to Action
Poor diet and inactivity are poised to become the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, warns the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Formerly No. 1: tobacco use.

About Weight Loss
What really works and what doesn't when it comes to losing weight? Set modest goals, watch your portion sizes, and don't forget to exercise.

Nutrition
Deaths from poor diet and inactivity have risen by 33 percent over the last decade. Sixty-four percent of us are now obese or overweight.

Exercise
One in five U.S. children is overweight or obese. That's twice as many as 20 years ago, says the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Behavior
If Mom and Dad are couch potatoes, it can be contagious. It's easier to prevent obesity in childhood than try to correct the problem as an adult.

Related Health Issues
Being obese or overweight increases the risk for type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, gout and a host of other health problems.

The questions in this assessment ask about risk factors—conditions that may put you at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) states that the more risk factors you have, the more likely you are to develop diabetes.